Why Box Office Numbers Are Dropping
We've discussed this and had various rants before, but here we are in the middle of another summer movie season and watchin the studios blame anything from the internet to sunspots on why people aren't going to the movies in the numbers they used to. We have tons of great movies out this summer, and only Pirate of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest is performing up to lofty expectations.
I was reminded of exactly what the real problem was when I finally took in Superman Returns a couple of weeks ago. This is a great movie, one of the best this summer. It's numbers have to be disappointing. I missed the preview and opening weekend, so I went to see it only a couple of weekends after the initial release. It was barely still in the local 20 screen megaplex. It was showing in a closet in the back corner. Seriously, this auditorium, and I use that term loosely, only had 10 rows....10, no exaggeration.
This was a midnight show. Why do I like midnight shows? Easy, fewer kids and babies. But wouldn't ya know it, the movies is 10 minutes in and here comes baby mama and her daddy babies in to slip in and catch a second show after already sitting thru a 10PM showing of another film. Fortunately they didn't sit close, but in that theater, it was still close enough that I had to hear it, for the entire movie. Someone went to complain to the manager, but the 16 year old manager wasn't much for confrontation, he offered a free pass for next visit instead of fixing the problem.
So why do people not want to shell out $8-10 each for a movie, plus concession prices? Simple, the theater experience isn't special any more, and in fact is often overall inferior to the home experience. We're now living with generations of kids who have had movies used as a babysitter, they have no clue they're supposed to be quiet.
Meanwhile, at home, screen sizes are getting larger and sharper. DVD's are coming out sooner. You can get the same viewing ratio and sharpness, more comfortable seats, cheaper and better munchies, and if anyone opens their mouth you can smack the back of their head without goin to jail or throw them out yourself.
Wanna fix it? Dont blame the internet. Really guys, people are not sneaking in and taping entire movies on their cellphone and ruining your box office that way. No, it's mostly the fact that people wont sit down, shut up and watch the movie. The fix is easy, add one more cheap minimum wage employee per every 3 or 4 screens, and this time dont make him manager, make him an usher. All he has to do is go from auditorium to auditorium and spend 10 minutes or so at a time in each. The people in that theater who are driving the rest of the patrons nuts will reveal themselves in that time. Ask 'em to be quite or leave.
Who cares if they never come back. If they dont, perhaps the people looking for a place to take a date or who genuinely enjoy movies will come back. Myself, I've gone from seeing at least one movie per week to seeing no more than one per month.
I was reminded of exactly what the real problem was when I finally took in Superman Returns a couple of weeks ago. This is a great movie, one of the best this summer. It's numbers have to be disappointing. I missed the preview and opening weekend, so I went to see it only a couple of weekends after the initial release. It was barely still in the local 20 screen megaplex. It was showing in a closet in the back corner. Seriously, this auditorium, and I use that term loosely, only had 10 rows....10, no exaggeration.
This was a midnight show. Why do I like midnight shows? Easy, fewer kids and babies. But wouldn't ya know it, the movies is 10 minutes in and here comes baby mama and her daddy babies in to slip in and catch a second show after already sitting thru a 10PM showing of another film. Fortunately they didn't sit close, but in that theater, it was still close enough that I had to hear it, for the entire movie. Someone went to complain to the manager, but the 16 year old manager wasn't much for confrontation, he offered a free pass for next visit instead of fixing the problem.
So why do people not want to shell out $8-10 each for a movie, plus concession prices? Simple, the theater experience isn't special any more, and in fact is often overall inferior to the home experience. We're now living with generations of kids who have had movies used as a babysitter, they have no clue they're supposed to be quiet.
Meanwhile, at home, screen sizes are getting larger and sharper. DVD's are coming out sooner. You can get the same viewing ratio and sharpness, more comfortable seats, cheaper and better munchies, and if anyone opens their mouth you can smack the back of their head without goin to jail or throw them out yourself.
Wanna fix it? Dont blame the internet. Really guys, people are not sneaking in and taping entire movies on their cellphone and ruining your box office that way. No, it's mostly the fact that people wont sit down, shut up and watch the movie. The fix is easy, add one more cheap minimum wage employee per every 3 or 4 screens, and this time dont make him manager, make him an usher. All he has to do is go from auditorium to auditorium and spend 10 minutes or so at a time in each. The people in that theater who are driving the rest of the patrons nuts will reveal themselves in that time. Ask 'em to be quite or leave.
Who cares if they never come back. If they dont, perhaps the people looking for a place to take a date or who genuinely enjoy movies will come back. Myself, I've gone from seeing at least one movie per week to seeing no more than one per month.
